http://www.kurdistan24.net/en/news/fc8aa40b-2935-416c-979f-355a52812bbc
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) – Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday told the US to withdraw its troops from the Kurdish-held town of Manbij in northern Syria, once again threatening a confrontation with American forces.
Addressing a parliamentary convention of his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), Erdogan said former US President Barack Obama deceived him over Manbij, reminding that Americans had promised that Kurdish forces would vacate after capturing it from the Islamic State (IS) two years ago.
“Over 90 percent of Manbij is Arab land. Why are you still there? Come on, get out,” Erdogan said, adding that his counterpart Donald Trump was following Obama’s footsteps in Syria.
Ankara calls the US-armed Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) fighting IS “terrorists,” and Erdogan often threads along ethnic lines in Syria while maintaining that his country is not targeting the Kurds.
“You are still telling us not to approach Manbij. We will come to Manbij to give it back to its true owners,” Erdogan said, repeating his earlier remarks about the Kurdish enclave of Afrin attacked by his army and Islamist proxies for three weeks now.